The Dodgers signed outfielder Brian Giles to a minor league deal, reports MLB.com's Ken Gurnick. In a pair of tweets, ESPN's Buster Olney reports that Giles would get a $550K base salary with another $200K in performance bonuses. If the Dodgers aren't going to keep him on the roster at the end of Spring Training, he can ask for his release. Giles will compete for a fifth outfielder or pinch-hitter role.
Giles, 39, hit .191/.277/.271 in 253 plate appearances for the Padres last year, struggling defensively as well. His season ended in June with a knee injury. Giles had a strong season in 2008 - his .398 OBP ranked sixth in the league. Former Padres GM Kevin Towers picked up his $9MM option for '09, despite the outfielder's off-the-field concerns.
Interesting note from Gurnick – "Giles nearly was general manager Ned Colletti's first acquisition after he took over the Dodgers in the winter of 2005, but the San Diego native re-signed with the Padres and Colletti turned to shortstop Rafael Furcal." This time around Giles reportedly drew interest from eight to ten teams, including the Yankees and Reds.
Awful on defense and offense.
Dodgers could and should have done better.
we r taking shots on cheap guys who r low risk/high reward which is exactly what we should be doing-and besides brian giles can be bigger power threat off the bench for us then brad ausmus doug mientkiewicz jamey carroll and reed johnson combined!-a power bat off the bench is a need and we r taking a shot!-dodgers are having a good month and i want wang next!
Giles might be a great pickup for a pinch hitter. He can draw a walk, and still does not strike out easily. I don’t think we were looking for another outfielder actually… We may have scored a good PH for 2010 here. I like the signing.
Giles might be a great pickup for a pinch hitter. He can draw a walk, and still does not strike out easily. I don’t think we were looking for another outfielder actually… We may have scored a good PH for 2010 here. I like the signing.
On Glebb’s note, he also has a miserable OBP.
Why?
Wow. Probably now the Padres are going to use Hairston and Hairston JR. in the outfield and will deal with saved money to sign a RF,CF, or LF.
I’m not sure what your point is. Giles was never going to come back to SD anyways so it’s not like there is any ‘money saved’.
yeah. I agree when did the Padres trade him to the Dodgers? Never. But this is actually an Interesting signing because Brian Giles had one bad year; 2009, and if he can prove health, he can be a valuable pinch hitter. I don’t see him playing in the field due to his defense and the recent Reed Johnson signing (Reed Johnson is the 4th outfielder), but I suppose his playing time will come when the Dodgers face AL teams in the AL ballpark (as a DH) and Pinch Hitting Primarily. Possibly a 5th Outfielder but that is what Alfredo Amezaga is for. Still, a good signing though. I love the signing.
Padres are done until Spring Training.
Lefty off the bench. They’re through.
Almost signed in 2005? Yeah he was good then.
Come on Neddy, sign Marcus Giles too!
The Dodgers have a ton of competition for the end of the rotation and 4th/maybe 5th outfielder, not bad considering how most thought they would just stand pat.
this makes me happy
Freddy Sanchez and Aubrey Huff make me happy.
why? just why do we sign brian giles?
Because we are going to trade Andre Ethier for a middling A ball player and insert Giles into the clean up spot.
i wouldnt put it past em.
661 Dodgerblue why would we trade ethier away if we just signed him to a 2 year deal!
i believe this was meant as sarcasm.. could be wrong but pretty sure i’m right considering ethiers only gonna get better and giles was only signed to a minor league deal
Really?
Why would the Dodgers trade Andre Eithier? Probably to a contender for a stud. But for one thing, never put Brian Giles in the clean up spot. The lineup should be like this:
Rafael Furcal
Ronnie Belliard
Matt Kemp
Manny Rameriez
Andre Ethier
James Loney
Russel Martin
Brian Giles
Pitcher
dude… sarcasm. It isnt that hard to figure out…
dude… sarcasm. It isnt that hard to figure out…
so you’re saying Brian Giles should start over Casey Blake..??
Come on bud… pull yourself together.
Why do people not catch sarcasm? Anyway, I’d switch Martin and Belliard, and where the hell is Giles playing in this situation, 3B?
Why would the Dodgers trade Andre Eithier? Probably to a contender for a stud. But for one thing, never put Brian Giles in the clean up spot. The lineup should be like this:
Rafael Furcal
Ronnie Belliard
Matt Kemp
Manny Rameriez
Andre Ethier
James Loney
Russel Martin
Brian Giles
Pitcher
One word, three syllables: Sarcasm O_O
One word, three syllables: Sarcasm O_O
Giles had a pretty solid career, age and injury has caught up with him but if you read the terms of the contract all it boils down to is a spring training invitation. The Dodgers will take a look at him and see if he is washed up or if he can help the team. If he does not make the team he will ask for his release.
awful signing why would the dodgers want that guy we already have reed johnson! and if he’s going to compete for the pinch-hit role we already have doug mientcawicz or whatever his last name is as the lefty pinch-hitter
Giles could at the very least offer some pop off the bench. And plus, we only signed him for $550k, with a MAXIMUM earning of $750k with incentives. If he can provide decent pop off the bench as a pinch-hitter (which is what we signed him to compete for). That isn’t an awful signing, and is meant to be treated for what it is – a minor deal that helps provide more depth. Nothing more.
Sheesh people need to not overreact.
I think saying he has pop is an overreaction.
Giles could at the very least offer some pop off the bench. And plus, we only signed him for $550k, with a MAXIMUM earning of $750k with incentives. If he can provide decent pop off the bench as a pinch-hitter (which is what we signed him to compete for). That isn’t an awful signing, and is meant to be treated for what it is – a minor deal that helps provide more depth. Nothing more.
Sheesh people need to not overreact.
its a minor league deal. meh…
Giles 136 OPS+ is 15th among active players. His .400 career OBP is 10th among active players. His Career .502 SLG (38th)and .902 OPS (22nd) is mighty impressive considering he played his last 6 seasons in Petco Park, the worst hitters park in the game.
In 2009 he was injured on April 17th and continued to play through it until June.
In 2008 he hit .306/.398/.456/.854. Anyone that can hit like that in Petco is worth a flyer to see if he recovered from his injury.
Great signing by the Dodgers.
i really hope colletti’s stockpiling all these minor league deals in hopes to pull off a trade for a solid starter
Quick, name the ace at the start of the year for the:
2008 Phillies
2008 Rays
2007 Rockies
2006 Cardinals
2009 Rockies
You dont need an ace to win. The first 4 were all WS teams
i dont necessarily mean ace, just a solid starter with some major league experience over the current canidates for the fifth starter
we dont need another starter, especially a veteran. How was this team built? Letting the kids grow. Billz, Kershaw, Broxton, Trancoso, Kemp, Martin, Loney, Ethier, etc were all prospects in our system that got a shot and have budded into stars, or are close to that level. The only way we are going to know if Elbert can handle being an MLB starter, if McDonald should be in the pen long term, how much value Haeger will give us, is Stults in our future, is to let these guys go out for the 5th spot and impress the coaches. I stand behind the thought that our innings eater will be Haeger, or at least should be. He is a knuckleballer and has the ability to eat innings and be effective. He didnt magically run into his minor league numbers, or his couple starts with the Dodgers last season.
In our rotation, we have two budding aces in Billz and Kershaw(both homegrown) and two vets, in Kuroda and Padilla. I truly believe that if our 5th starter options all suck, we will sign a guy like Wang and see what he has.
This team was built on letting young guys grow into stars… why trade those young guys for a marginal upgrade? It makes no sense, on the baseball or business side
I just see this as the year the Dodger’s should go all out for it b.c after this year i see the Dodger’s having to rebuild somewhat after Manny’s and Kuroda’s contracts are up and it would also be the last year of Blake and Furcal so i see them being traded to try to fill some holes so why not try to go after a good starter with 2+ years of experience and then let the kids battle it out next year with another year of experience under their belts too. Either that or I’d like to see Stults get a shot since it’s his last chance.
**2+ years left on their contract
Blake nailed it, Im just gonna add my two cents because this was technically directed at me.
Losing Kuroda and Manny isnt going to be that big of a deal. Kuroda is a #3 on his best days. Manny, while I expect him to have a great year, is getting older and will soon be a DH. Blake mentioned Russell and Lambo as guys who could take over, but one he missed is Trayvon Robinson. Has similar speed to Dee Gordon(!!!!) with power and defense. Broke out last season and if he repeats last year, we could have a very good prospect on our hands.
Blake and Furcal wont be traded you dont trade the left side of your infield when you are the best team in your division. They will live out the contracts in Dodger blue and hopefully will collect us some picks.
With the starters, you seem to ignore the power prospects we have coming up. Elbert could be MLB ready, but may be given another year to perfect his change up. He will undoubtedly be in LA in 2011. Withrow will be in LA in 2011 most likely as well. They are both strikeout pitchers with extremely high ceilings. We are talking ace or #2 ceilings. They should easily be able to take over the innings that Kuroda leaves behind.
It is very simple… the Dodgers will not rebuild so long as we have Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier, Russ Martin, Clayton Kershaw and Chad Billingsley on the roster. These guys have WAY too much talent for the team to even consider rebuilding
they can trade the left side of there infield because they are not the clear cut best team in the division.
until the Rockies beat us, we are the best team in the division. We didnt get any worse and the Rockies didnt do anything that should scare everyone…
dont forget how much the d backs inproved… they wont be pushed over this year.
Did the Dbacks really improve? they made the most moves, but did they improve? Is Edwin Jackson, who is bound to regress based on his unsustainable statistics. If Scherzer stays as a starter, he is a better pitcher than Jackson, IMO, and is cheaper. They will rely on the offense hitting for a full year(their offensive core, while talented, has always gone on hot and cold streaks for weeks at a time as a whole). They also will need Webb to bounce back from surgery, Haren to reproduce his 09 and Jackson to not regress. I have always said they are the wild card of the West, but right now there are too many question marks, IMO
Wait…really? You think the Dodgers will be in rebuilding mode after we lose Manny, Kuroda, Blake and Furcal? Do you really think that we won’t have the money at the point their contracts are up to sign someone?
Furthermore, consider how little Manny contributed to our offense this last year, and consider also that we have farmhands like Andrew Lambo (who could develop decent 20-25 HR power with a good AVG) and Kyle Russell (who has MAMMOTH power potential) that could step into the OF in the next few seasons. Furcal will be gone, and we will be very happy with our brand new speed-demon SS Devaris Gordon (73 SB’s in 2009). Blake will be gone and can easily be replaced in-house (Blake DeWitt would do nicely) or can be replaced by an FA (2011 could bring Beltre back to LA, or bring in a guy like Jorge Cantu). And Kuroda…well, by the time he is gone I would imagine one of James McDonald or Scot Elbert will be pitching well in our rotation, and one of Ethan Martin or Chris Withrow getting ready to break camp in a year or so. By then we could also sign a FA named Josh Beckett, Brandon Webb, Ted Lilly, Cliff Lee, or trade for someone.
Our team is set for at least another 5-8 years depending on what kinds of contracts our kids get (i.e. Kershaw, Kemp, Ethier, Bills and Broxton are the KEYS).
Blake, we will see internal options fill holes vets leave.
For 3B, DeWitt will probably end up there if DeJesus is healthy. If DeJesus isnt healthy, we will probably see a FA at 3b and leave DeWitt at 2B(assuming DeWitt’s defense improves).
For SS, it is Gordon’s spot. Depending on if he is ready, DeJesus may play one season as the starter at SS, but longterm, its Gordon.
With the pitching, I agree that the prospects will step up. We simply have too many young guns in the minors to NOT have them mature into stars. However, I find it impossible that E. Martin is in the majors in 2011. He is too raw, IMO. It is more likely we see Gould or Miller. Withrow is a near lock, as is Elbert. Man, this rotation is gonna be crazy in a couple years.
I agree that as long as McCourt doesnt cheap out on us, this team is built for now and the future…
I see DeWitt filling in at third and Dee Gordan filling in at short next year. Then we have holes at left and two holes in our rotation assuming none of the kids [5th starter candidates] assurt themselves as a good reliable starter this year which honestly i dont see them doing. With the money cleared up from Manny’s departure i think we can go out and get a good power left fielder, not sure who yet b.c i haven’t looked at who will be available, but i think it’d be smart, would compliment Kemp and Ethier and help replace Blake’s bat. This being said we still have 2 holes in our rotation. I’m hoping that by next season Bills and Kershaw will have broken through as the ace pitchers they can potentially be but with two inexperienced kids on the left side of the infield i think theres even more reason for quality pitching. All this and I’ve left out there will still be a hole at 2nd base. So yes, i see the Dodger’s rebuilding SOMEWHAT after this season. I’m not saying they will do what the Pirate’s did this last season but Colletti will definately have some work to do.
You think Gordon will be ready after 2010? Wow… He is a raw SS prospect who played in A ball last year.
2B- let me introduce you to Ivan DeJesus Jr(If Gordon is somehow ready)
Now, if Gordon isnt ready, like I expect him to be, this is what our infield will look like… 3B is either Baez or Gallagher, depending on if they are ready. If not, we sign a stop gap. DeJesus then play SS(his natural position) and DeWitt takes over 2B. DeWitt’s bat plays at 2B and if he improves defensively, he could be there for a long time.
Rotation, just from guys in the organization: Billz, Kershaw at one and two. We will most likely sign one veteran to be our #3 and eat some innings. For the 4th and 5th spot we will have McDonald, Elbert, Withrow, Haeger, Lindblom and any other prospect that could break out. Elbert and Withrow have TOR potential, McDonald, Haeger and Lindblom all have #3 potential. We have plenty of pitching.
We will not need to rebuild unless we have many unexpected, unavoidable problems, ie injuries.
You think Gordon will be ready after 2010? Wow… He is a raw SS prospect who played in A ball last year.
2B- let me introduce you to Ivan DeJesus Jr(If Gordon is somehow ready)
Now, if Gordon isnt ready, like I expect him to be, this is what our infield will look like… 3B is either Baez or Gallagher, depending on if they are ready. If not, we sign a stop gap. DeJesus then play SS(his natural position) and DeWitt takes over 2B. DeWitt’s bat plays at 2B and if he improves defensively, he could be there for a long time.
Rotation, just from guys in the organization: Billz, Kershaw at one and two. We will most likely sign one veteran to be our #3 and eat some innings. For the 4th and 5th spot we will have McDonald, Elbert, Withrow, Haeger, Lindblom and any other prospect that could break out. Elbert and Withrow have TOR potential, McDonald, Haeger and Lindblom all have #3 potential. We have plenty of pitching.
We will not need to rebuild unless we have many unexpected, unavoidable problems, ie injuries.
I see DeWitt filling in at third and Dee Gordan filling in at short next year. Then we have holes at left and two holes in our rotation assuming none of the kids [5th starter candidates] assurt themselves as a good reliable starter this year which honestly i dont see them doing. With the money cleared up from Manny’s departure i think we can go out and get a good power left fielder, not sure who yet b.c i haven’t looked at who will be available, but i think it’d be smart, would compliment Kemp and Ethier and help replace Blake’s bat. This being said we still have 2 holes in our rotation. I’m hoping that by next season Bills and Kershaw will have broken through as the ace pitchers they can potentially be but with two inexperienced kids on the left side of the infield i think theres even more reason for quality pitching. All this and I’ve left out there will still be a hole at 2nd base. So yes, i see the Dodger’s rebuilding SOMEWHAT after this season. I’m not saying they will do what the Pirate’s did this last season but Colletti will definately have some work to do.
I would not count on every guy who is doing good in the farm system to be able to replace guys who leave. Most likely very few of them will be able to play in the major leagues.The dodgers were lucky to have developed a great crop of young players. The current ownership will not sign blue chip prospects coming out of high school or college. The dodgers position right or wrong is they are overpriced, That is according to what Dennis Manion said in a televised interview. If you want a Championship the time is now. The dodgers were very lucky last year in the 5th spot of the rotation. A group of minor league guys with marginal major league talent won 18 games.They will need like type production this year to win the division. Lots of questions going into 2010. Hopefully everyone will have a career year, and there is solid pitching and timely hitting, with a limited amount of injury issues and they can go all the way.The Dodgers of the LA era would pop up and win a World Series every now and then. It has been twenty two years since the last championship. It would be nice to see a Dodger team owned other then the O`Malley win one.
Did I say that every single player I mentioned will become a star? I do not believe so. My point is we will not be rebuilding. We have MiLB talent that can come and replace the vets. Whether you want to face it or not the game is no longer about paying veterans 20M to fill spots.
I am not sure if you do not follow prospects or just have no faith in them. We have a fair amount of talent coming up through the system, especially on the pitching side. Depending on how far Billz and Kershaw progress, we may not even need an innings eater.
I really dont know why you seem so bleak about our prospects and our future. We have the most established young core in baseball. We still have each of them for multiple years. The farm system is built so that as some of these guys leave as FAs, our prospects will be ready.
My point is it is time to win now, not worry about minor leaguers. If you do not win a cahmpionship in the next few years next thing youu
If we do not win a title in the next few years we will have to resign some of our young studs(obviously not all) and have PROSPECTS take over. Otherwise, our future will be similar to how the Phillies’s will be in a few seasons…
Did I say that every single player I mentioned will become a star? I do not believe so. My point is we will not be rebuilding. We have MiLB talent that can come and replace the vets. Whether you want to face it or not the game is no longer about paying veterans 20M to fill spots.
I am not sure if you do not follow prospects or just have no faith in them. We have a fair amount of talent coming up through the system, especially on the pitching side. Depending on how far Billz and Kershaw progress, we may not even need an innings eater.
I really dont know why you seem so bleak about our prospects and our future. We have the most established young core in baseball. We still have each of them for multiple years. The farm system is built so that as some of these guys leave as FAs, our prospects will be ready.
I would not count on every guy who is doing good in the farm system to be able to replace guys who leave. Most likely very few of them will be able to play in the major leagues.The dodgers were lucky to have developed a great crop of young players. The current ownership will not sign blue chip prospects coming out of high school or college. The dodgers position right or wrong is they are overpriced, That is according to what Dennis Manion said in a televised interview. If you want a Championship the time is now. The dodgers were very lucky last year in the 5th spot of the rotation. A group of minor league guys with marginal major league talent won 18 games.They will need like type production this year to win the division. Lots of questions going into 2010. Hopefully everyone will have a career year, and there is solid pitching and timely hitting, with a limited amount of injury issues and they can go all the way.The Dodgers of the LA era would pop up and win a World Series every now and then. It has been twenty two years since the last championship. It would be nice to see a Dodger team owned other then the O`Malley win one.
I get your point, I just need to point something out real quick – 2006 Cardinals had a clear cut ace going into the season and during, Chris Carpenter.
Come on man, if the Dodgers don’t get CC, Peavy, Halladay, and Lee they won’t even make the playoffzzzzz.
Screw Kershaw and Billingsley, they are just terrible. I hope we trade them both for a proven ace like Carlos Zambrano!@11!!!!
I honestly feel like this is how the uneducated Dodger fans feel, and it makes me sad.
the sad thing is people actually feel this way. Thank god they are just dumb fans that everyone ignores and not someone with more power…
They are ignorant and do not know anything about baseball except for “big names”. But they give me something to laught about here and there.
Did you reply to me with something different to this then change it? Lol. I’ve got a different response from you in my email from Disquis 😉
But yeah, it’s sad how many people listen to Bill P. of the LA Times, he’s just a joke. After Bills’ last two seasons there should be no doubt that he is, at the least, a really good number 2 pitcher, if not a good number 1 pitcher if he has to be. My dream rotation is still this in 3 years:
Kershaw
Billingsley
Withrow
Elbert
Aaron Miller/Ethan Martin/James Mcdonald/Garret Gould
The thought of that rotation is making me salavate…mmmmm….
I just hope to god the Dodgers FO smarts up and extends Billingsley past free agency.
Yea I appoligize. I kind of misread it and thought you were making the statement about trading kershaw and billz. sorry.
That is a pretty solid rotation, but like you said, in three years. Can’t wait ’til ST.
Lol, no biggie. I just wish it was April right now, Baseball needs to be here 🙁
Quick, name the ace at the start of the year for the:
2008 Phillies
2008 Rays
2007 Rockies
2006 Cardinals
2009 Rockies
You dont need an ace to win. The first 4 were all WS teams
This is a good signing because the dodgers would have had to deal with a all righty bench and now comes giles with a left handed power bat off the bench. He made a mistake but didnt manny, arod, tiger woods, mark mcquire etc. and now the clouds cleared up for them…All of this is in the past so leave it be and continue on.
This is a good signing because the dodgers would have had to deal with a all righty bench and now comes giles with a left handed power bat off the bench. He made a mistake but didnt manny, arod, tiger woods, mark mcquire etc. and now the clouds cleared up for them…All of this is in the past so leave it be and continue on.
Mientkiewicz…we have him as a lefty already off our bench. We weren’t going to have an all-righty bench. But Giles does present an opportunity for more power than Mientkiewicz.
i was around when giles was in high school at granite hills out in el cajon, and him and his brother were nicknamed the ‘roid brothers’. they were both juicing since high school. giles lost his power once the steroid stuff started getting serious.
Who is Brian Giles? I’ll try Baseball players who i thought were dead for $600 Alex.